Ship-steering mechanism



(No Modelj 2 Sheets-Sheet; 1.

G. F. OLEMONS.

SHIP STEERING MBGHANISM. K

IPented Sept. 30, 1884. Jay

INVENTOR ATTRNEY WITNESSES:

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

G. E. GLEMONS.

SHIP STEERING MECHANISM.

WITNESSES M ZYENTIOE lay/@M7 a@ ATTORNEY Unirse Stearns tParnNr @prima GEORGE F. GLEMONS, OF SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS.

SHIP-STEIERING MECHANlStll/l.

`EP33CIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 305,741, dated September 30, 188%.

Application filed December 10, 1853. (No model.)

To a/ZZ whom t 'n1/ty concer/L Be it known that I, GEORGE F. CLnMoNs, a citizen of Ithe United States, residing at Springfield, in the county of Hampden and State oi" Massachusetts, have invented new and useful Improvements in Ship-Steering Mechanism, ofwhich the following isaspecication.

This inventionrelates to improvements in shipsteering devices adapted to be operated by hand or otherwise, the object being to proc vide mechanism, connected with the rudder` by chains, ropes, gearing, or other suitable means, A

of such power that one man only is required to control and operate it, and which is constructed to oi' itself hold the rudder in any position to which it may have been turned or against any strain of currents or waves without locking it'and independent of any power exerted 'upon the wheel, and yet which is always free to be operated without delay.

ln the drawings forming part of this specification, Figure l is a perspective View show ing a portion of aships deck,together with the upper end oi" the rudder-post and of steering devices geared to the latter embodying my improvements. Fig. 2 is a side elevation, partly iu section.

. section, ot' parts ofthe operating mechanism.

Fig. 4t is a perspectiveview illustrating my improvements connected with the rudder-post by chains and lever.

The mechanism ot' this device, which is counected with the ordinary steering-wheel and ,its shaft and with the rudder by gearing, chains, or otherwise, is substantially that described and shown iu my patent dated May l, 1883,1or

apparatus i'or transmitting differential rotary .1 inition, to which reference may be had.

The said patented device or mechanism consists, substantially, ol' the perforated disk F,

having in this construction a hub, g, thereon,

to which is fixed a gear, a; also, of a pinion, y, 'f

ries the )inion i around in an eccentric )athand7 also7 oi' an internal gear, to, with which the teeth ol" said pinion engage, and whereby when the latter is carried around eccentrically, as aforesaid, said pinion is caused to ro- Fig is a front view, partly 1n' tate, giving rotary motion to the disk F and gear a. rlhe rudder-post B stands up through the deck A, as usual, and has secured to it a geared segment, D, with which the gear a engages. The wheel-shaft c, having secured on it the usual steering-wheel, m, has its rear end supported in a suitable bearing on the' standard E, which is bolted to the deck A in the rear of the rudderlpost B. rllie internal gear, w, partly within which the disk F and pinion y operate, is supported in a yoke-frame, h, which is bolted to the deck in front ofthe rudder-post. The internal gear, in, has upon it-s outer face two studs, zz, opposite each other, upon which are placed heavy rubber springs t, of cylindrical form. Sockets lU o are made in the yoke-frame 7L to receive the said studs and rubber springs, the yoke-frame encircling and supporting gear u; and the parts within and passing through it, as shown in Fig. 2.

rlhe operation oi' the above-described device is as followsr- When shaft c is turned by wheel m, the eccentrica carries the pinion y around, rolling it against the teeth of gear w, and giv` ving it a rotary motion on the said eccentric.

As aforesaid, the studs 7) on the rear i'ace ol' pinion y engage in the perforations 7 of the disk F, causing the latter and gear a on. the hub g of'said disk to be rotated, and since the gear a engages with the geared segment D on the rudder-post D the latter and the rudder are thereby turned in either direction by turning wheel m. rlhe turning ot' the eccentric n in piniony gives a rotary motion to gear a,- but no amount of force exerted upon said gear by the rudder-post can rotate it, ii'or the disk F is by said force turned against the studs b on pinion. y, and the axis oi' the latter is eccentric to that ot' the disk F, and the periphery of said pinion engages with the teeth ot' the internal gear, io. Therefore the force oi' the rudder cannot rotate the parts so long as the internal gear is held so that it cannot turn in frame lz..

The purpose of the springst on the studs of the gear `zo is to provide cushioned bearings for said studs, to relieve the parts somewhat `from the great ilorcc of the waves when they strike the sides of the rudder and give a twisting movement to the rudder-post.

It will be understood from the above description that the rotary motion of the disk F IOO y less rapid than that of wheel m-about one to ive, more or less-and that the differential mechanism itself, leaving the wheel m free, firmly holds the rudder in any position to which it may be turned.

Fig. 4. illustrates the application of my differential mechanism to a rudder-post provided with atiller, D, and the usual chain, c2, running through the roller-blocks e on the deck A to the hub g. In this construction the rear end of shaft c is supported in a swivel-bearing in the end of the rudder-post The yokeframe h is the same as in Fig. l.

The operating mechanism in Fig. -lf is identical with that above described in connection with Figs. l and 2, excepting that the hub g is enlarged to make it a proper size for a chaindrum on which to Wind chain c?, the gear a and segment D being dispensed With.

What I claim as my invention ism 1. In combination with the wheel-shaft c, eccentric n, and the rudder-post B, the perforated disk F, having hub g thereon, the pinion y, having studs b thereon, the internal gear, w, and means, substantially as described, 2 5 to hold the latter and prevent it from rotating, and mechanism, substantially as described, connecting the hub g and the rudderpost B, substantially as set forth.

2. In combination, the yoke-frame h, having the sockets "u, the internal gear, Iw, having the studs z to enter said sockets, the springs t, the wheel-shaft c, the eccentric n, pinion i, disk F, the rudder-post B, and means, substantially as described, for connecting the hub g 3 5 and the rudder-post, substantially as set forth.

GEORGE F. GLEMONS.

Witnesses:

H. A. CHAPIN, J. D GARFIELD. 

